The present invention pertains to a wire connector and in particular a plug housing the wire and a receptacle for receiving the plug therein and providing an electrical connection.
Many electrical devices are connected by wires that have an insulator surrounding a majority of the wire and a stripped portion exposing a terminal metallic portion of the wire that provides for an electrical connection. The stripped portion of the wire in some prior devices was received by a wire trap connector having a specially designed contact for receiving a bare stripped end of a wire therein for connection to a host device, such as a ballast for a lighting fixture. The bore of the wire trap connector is formed so that insertion of the wire within the connector, traps the stripped terminal within the connector providing an electrical connection. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,494,456 provides for a contact mounted with the wire trap connector housing that engages the wire without being over stressed. Such a wire trap connector also provides for a wire extraction tool inserted within the housing in order to release the wire from within the wire trap connector. Such wire trap connectors work well when it is convenient to maintain the bare wire for connection to the host device. However, maintaining the wires in a bare state may cause the terminal portions of the wires to become bent, frayed or entangled with other wires during transport preventing future intermating. Such damage to the terminal portion of the wires may also degrade the electrical connection between the connector and the wire.
Alternative connection methods include soldering the wire directly to a printed circuit board However this task is timely and also may lead to damage of the exposed terminal portion of the wire. Such a soldering operation does not lend itself to an automated assembly procedure and is difficult to accomplish with a wire harness or a cable with multiple wires.
In order to overcome some of the above discussed disadvantages, an invention is provided, in an embodiment, providing a combination plug and receptacle assembly comprising a plug having a first housing half and a second housing half for capturing therebetween a wire and insulator. The housing includes a body for capturing the insulator and a ferrule for capturing the wire so that the wire is exposed for electrical connection thereto and a ferrule having a first retention member. A receptacle is provided having an aperture for receiving the plug therein and the aperture extends between a rear face and a front face. A contact is mounted adjacent the aperture and is exposed at the rear face. A hinged flap encloses the aperture at the rear face. A second retention member is adjacent to the aperture for coupling with the first retention member in order to lock the plug within the aperture of the receptacle. In an embodiment, each plug housing half may include a major surface having a channel for receiving the wire and insulator therein. In an embodiment, a bore may be formed in the ferrule and in communication with the channel in order to receive an end of the wire formed at approximately 90xc2x0 from the wire received in the channel. In an embodiment each housing half may include welding features to enhance the welding of the first half to the second half. In an embodiment, a welding feature may be an energy director for ultrasonically welding the first and second halves.
In an embodiment, the first half may include the body having the ferrule extending therefrom and the second half may include a body corresponding to the body of the first half so that upon mating of the halves, the ferrule protrudes beyond each body and the major surface having the wire mounted in the channel is exposed adjacent the body of the second half. In an embodiment each channel may include a wire receiving portion and an insulator receiving portion wherein the diameter of the insulator receiving portion is greater than the wire receiving portion. In an embodiment., the wire may be crimped between the wire receiving portion and the insulator in order to act as a strain relief for the wire. In an embodiment, the first retention member may include a ramped protrusion. In an embodiment, the second retention member may include a tab so that when the ferrule is inserted in the aperture the protrusion slides past the tab and locks behind the tab, restricting the plug from being removed from the receptacle.
In an embodiment, the flap may include a living hinge connecting it to the rear face. In an embodiment, the flap may include fingers for engaging bumps on the rear face in order to lock the flap in a closed and sealed position. In an embodiment, the contact may be stamped and formed having a right angle tail protruding through a passage in the receptacle so that the receptacle may be through-hole mounted to a host substrate. In an embodiment, the host substrate may include liquid pitch disbursed therein and the flap sealing the aperture from the pitch. In an embodiment, the plug may include a ridge formed on the body to abut the front face when the plug is inserted in the receptacle. In an embodiment, the plug may include a plurality of ferrules for receiving a plurality of wires therein. In an embodiment, the receptacle may include a plurality of apertures for receiving the plurality of ferrules therein.
In a further embodiment, an electrical plug and wire assembly is provided comprising a wire having a metallic, terminal portion protruding from an insulator. A plug is provided having a first housing half and a second housing half for capturing the wire therebetween. The housing includes a body for capturing the wire therebetween, the housing including a body for capturing at least a portion of the insulator and a ferrule for capturing at least a portion of the metallic, terminal portion of the wire so that the terminal portion is exposed for electrical connection thereto. A first retention member is provided and protrudes from the ferrule. In an embodiment. the plus may be received by a receptacle having an aperture extending between a rear face and a front face and a contact mounted adjacent to the aperture for contacting the terminal portion of the wire. In an embodiment, the receptacle may include a hinged flap for enclosing the aperture at the rear face and a second retention member adjacent the aperture for coupling the first retention member in order to lock the plug within the aperture of the receptacle.
In an embodiment each plug housing half may include a major surface having a channel for receiving the wire and terminal therein. In an embodiment, a hole may be formed in the ferrule and in communication with the channel in order to receive a terminal portion of the wire formed at approximately 90xc2x0 from the wire received in the channel. In an embodiment, the first half may include the body having the ferrule extending therefrom and the second half may include a body corresponding to the body of the first half so that upon mating of the halves the ferrule protrudes beyond each body and the major surface having the wire mounted in the channel is exposed adjacent to body of the second half. In an embodiment, each channel may include a wire receiving portion and an insulator receiving portion wherein the diameter of the insulator receiving portion is greater than the wire receiving portion. In an embodiment, the first retention member may include a ramped protrusion. In an embodiment, the second retention member may include a tab so that when the ferrule is inserted in the aperture the protrusion slides past the tab and locks behind the tab restricting the plug from being removed from the receptacle. In an embodiment, the contact is stamped and formed having a right angle tail protruding through passage in the receptacle so that the receptacle may be through-hole mounted to a host substrate.
In an additional embodiment, an electrical receptacle is provided comprising an aperture extending between a rear face and a front face for receiving a plug therein having a first retention member. A contact is provided mounted adjacent the aperture. A hinged flap-seal for enclosing the aperture is provided at the rear face in order to impede the flow of liquid into the aperture from the rear face. A second retention member is provided adjacent the aperture for coupling with the first retention member in order to lock the plug within the aperture of the receptacle. In an embodiment, the flap includes a living hinge integrally formed with a housing forming the receptacle. In an embodiment, the aperture may include a generally rectangular shaped opening at the front face having a keying feature at one side and the second retention member protruding into the opening from the keying feature at the front face. In an embodiment, a contact may be mounted in the receptacle adjacent the aperture and have a right angle tail for protruding through the housing of the receptacle in order to provide a mounting tail.
In an additional embodiment, a method of connectorizing a wire is provided comprising the steps of stripping a wire to expose the metallic, terminal portion from an insulator surrounding the wire, mounting the wire to the first housing half so that the wire is received within the channel formed in the first housing half and the channel is provided within a body and a ferrule forming the first housing half and the insulator is received at the body and the terminal portion is received at the ferrule, mounting a second housing half over the first housing half in order to capture the wire therebetween and bonding the first housing half to a second housing half to form an assembled plug. In an embodiment, the first housing half may include an energy director formed parallel to the channel, the energy director facilitating the bonding of the first half to the second half. In an embodiment, the method may comprise the additional steps of bending an end of the wire at approximately a right angle and inserting the end into a hole formed at a tip of the ferrule in order to mount the wire to the first housing half. In an embodiment the second housing half may include a channel for receiving the insulator therein. In an embodiment, the method may further comprise the step of forming a kink in the wire in order to provide a strain relief feature.
In a further embodiment, the invention provides for an electrical plug and wire assembly comprising a wire having a metallic, terminal portion protruding from an insulator and an end of the wire is bent at approximately a right angle. A plug is provided including a housing having the wire mounted therein, the housing including a body and a ferrule protruding therefrom. The ferrule is provided having a major surface that is an external surface of the plug and a hole for receiving the end of the wire and the ferrule capturing at least a portion of the terminal portion of the wire at the major surface so that the terminal portion is exposed for electrical connection thereto and a first retention member protruding from the ferrule.